This invention relates to microelectronic devices and fabrication methods therefor, and more particularly to light emitting diodes (LEDs) and manufacturing methods therefor.
Light emitting diodes are widely used in consumer and commercial applications. As is well known to those having skill in the art, a light emitting diode generally includes a diode region on a microelectronic substrate. The microelectronic substrate may comprise, for example, gallium arsenide, gallium phosphide, alloys thereof, silicon carbide and/or sapphire. Continued developments in LEDs have resulted in highly efficient and mechanically robust light sources that can cover the visible spectrum and beyond. These attributes, coupled with the potentially long service life of solid state devices, may enable a variety of new display applications, and may place LEDs in a position to compete with the well entrenched incandescent and fluorescent lamps.
One measure of efficiency of LEDs is the cost per lumen. The cost per lumen for an LED may be a function of the manufacturing cost per LED chip, the internal quantum efficiency of the LED material and the ability to couple or extract the generated light out of the device. An overview of light extraction issues may be found in the textbook entitled High Brightness Light Emitting Diodes to Stringfellow et al., Academic Press, 1997, and particularly Chapter 2, entitled Overview of Device Issues in High-Brightness Light Emitting Diodes, to Craford, at pp. 47-63.
Light extraction has been accomplished in many ways, depending, for example, on the materials that are used to fabricate the diode region and the substrate. For example, in gallium arsenide and gallium phosphide material systems, a thick, p-type, topside window layer may be used for light extraction. The p-type window layer may be grown because high epitaxial growth rates may be possible in the gallium arsenide/gallium phosphide material systems using liquid and/or vapor phase epitaxy. Moreover, current spreading may be achieved due to the conductivity of the p-type topside window layer. Chemical etching with high etch rates and high etch selectivity also may be used to allow the removal of at least some of the substrate if it is optically absorbent. Distributed Bragg reflectors also have been grown between an absorbing substrate and the diode region to decouple the emitting and absorbing regions.
Other approaches for light extraction may involve mechanical shaping or texturing of the diode region and/or the substrate. However, it may be desirable to provide other light extraction techniques that can allow further improvements in extraction efficiency. Moreover, it may be desirable to increase the area of an LED chip from about 0.1 mm2 to larger areas, to thereby provide larger LEDs. Unfortunately, the effectiveness of these shaping techniques may not be maintained as the chip dimensions are scaled up for higher power/intensity and/or other applications.
Much development interest and commercial activity recently has focused on LEDs that are fabricated in or on silicon carbide, because these LEDs can emit radiation in the blue/green portions of the visible spectrum. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,416,342 to Edmond et al., entitled Blue Light-Emitting Diode With High External Quantum Efficiency, assigned to the assignee of the present application, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if set forth fully herein. There also has been much interest in LEDs that include gallium nitride-based diode regions on silicon carbide substrates, because these devices also may emit light with high efficiency. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,177,688 to Linthicum et al., entitled Pendeoepitaxial Gallium Nitride Semiconductor Layers On Silicon Carbide Substrates, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if set forth fully herein.
In such silicon carbide LEDs or gallium nitride LEDs on silicon carbide, it may be difficult to use conventional techniques for light extraction. For example, it may be difficult to use thick p-type window layers because of the relatively low growth rate of gallium nitride. Also, although such LEDs may benefit from the use of Bragg reflectors and/or substrate removal techniques, it may be difficult to fabricate a reflector between the substrate and the gallium nitride diode region and/or to etch away at least part of the silicon carbide substrate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,966,862 to Edmond, entitled Method of Production of Light Emitting Diodes, assigned to the assignee of the present application, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if set forth fully herein, describes a method for preparing a plurality of light emitting diodes on a single substrate of a semiconductor material. The method is used for structures where the substrate includes an epitaxial layer of the same semiconductor material that in turn comprises layers of p-type and n-type material that define a p-n junction therebetween. The epitaxial layer and the substrate are etched in a predetermined pattern to define individual diode precursors, and deeply enough to form mesas in the epitaxial layer that delineate the p-n junctions in each diode precursor from one another. The substrate is then grooved from the side of the epitaxial layer and between the mesas to a predetermined depth to define side portions of diode precursors in the substrate while retaining enough of the substrate beneath the grooves to maintain its mechanical stability. Ohmic contacts are added to the epitaxial layer and to the substrate and a layer of insulating material is formed on the diode precursor. The insulating layer covers the portions of the epitaxial layer that are not covered by the ohmic contact, any portions of the one surface of the substrate adjacent the mesas, and the side portions of the substrate. As a result, the junction and the side portions of the substrate of each diode are insulated from electrical contact other than through the ohmic contacts. When the diodes are separated they can be conventionally mounted with the junction side down in a conductive epoxy without concern that the epoxy will short circuit the resulting diode. See the abstract of U.S. Pat. No. 4,966,862.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,210,051 to Carter, Jr., entitled High Efficiency Light Emitting Diodes From Bipolar Gallium Nitride, assigned to the assignee of the present application, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if set forth fully herein, describes a method of growing intrinsic, substantially undoped single crystal gallium nitride with a donor concentration of 7xc3x971017 cm3 or less. The method comprises introducing a source of nitrogen into a reaction chamber containing a growth surface while introducing a source of gallium into the same reaction chamber and while directing nitrogen atoms and gallium atoms to a growth surface upon which gallium nitride will grow. The method further comprises concurrently maintaining the growth surface at a temperature high enough to provide sufficient surface mobility to the gallium and nitrogen atoms that strike the growth surface to reach and move into proper lattice sites, thereby establishing good crystallinity, to establish an effective sticking coefficient, and to thereby grow an epitaxial layer of gallium nitride on the growth surface, but low enough for the partial pressure of nitrogen species in the reaction chamber to approach the equilibrium vapor pressure of those nitrogen species over gallium nitride under the other ambient conditions of the chamber to thereby minimize the loss of nitrogen from the gallium nitride and the nitrogen vacancies in the resulting epitaxial layer. See the abstract of U.S. Pat. No. 5,210,051.
In view of the above discussion, improved light extraction techniques may be desirable for LEDs, especially LEDs that are fabricated from silicon carbide, that are fabricated from gallium nitride on silicon carbide and/or that have a relatively large area.
Light emitting diodes according to some embodiments of the invention include a substrate having first and second opposing faces that is transparent to optical radiation in a predetermined wavelength range and that is patterned to define, in cross-section, a plurality of pedestals that extend into the substrate from the first face towards the second face. As used herein, the term xe2x80x9ctransparentxe2x80x9d refers to an element, such as a substrate, layer or region that allows some or all optical radiation in a predetermined wavelength range to pass therethrough, i.e., not opaque. A diode region on the second face is configured to emit light in the predetermined wavelength range, into the substrate upon application of voltage across the diode region. In other embodiments, a mounting support on the diode region, opposite the substrate is configured to support the diode region, such that the light that is emitted from the diode region into the substrate, is emitted from the first face upon application of voltage across the diode region. In some embodiments, the light emitting diode on a transparent substrate with pedestals is flip-mounted on a mounting support, with the diode region adjacent to the mounting support and a substrate opposite the mounting support, for light emission through the substrate. In other embodiments, the light emitting diode on a transparent substrate with pedestals is mounted on a mounting support, with the substrate adjacent to the mounting support and the diode region opposite the mounting support. Thus, non-flip-chip mounting also may be provided.
In yet other embodiments of the invention, a reflector also is provided between the mounting support and the diode region or the substrate. The reflector may be configured to reflect light that is emitted from the diode region back through the diode region, through the substrate and from the pedestals, upon application of voltage across the diode region. In other embodiments, a transparent electrode also may be provided between the diode region and the reflector. In still other embodiments, a solder preform and/or other bonding region may be provided between the reflector and the mounting support and/or an optical element such as a window or lens may be provided adjacent the first face opposite the diode region. In yet other embodiments, the diode region includes a peripheral portion and at least one central portion that is enclosed by the peripheral portion, and the light emitting diode further comprises at least one electrode on the diode region, that is confined to within the at least one central portion and does not extend onto the peripheral portion. It will be understood that the central portion need not be centered on the diode region.
In other embodiments of the invention, a contact structure for the substrate and/or the diode region of an LED includes a transparent ohmic region, a reflector, a barrier region and a bonding region. The transparent ohmic region provides electrical contact and/or current spreading. The reflector reflects at least some incident radiation and also may provide current spreading. The barrier region protects the reflector and/or the ohmic region. The bonding region bonds the LED package to a mounting support. In some embodiments, the functionality of the transparent ohmic region and the reflector can be combined in a single ohmic and reflector region. Contact structures according to these embodiments of the invention also may be used with conventional silicon carbide LEDs, gallium nitride on silicon carbide LEDs and/or other LEDs.
In still other embodiments of the present invention, the first face of the substrate may include therein at least one groove that defines a plurality of pedestals, such as triangular pedestals, in the substrate. The grooves may include tapered sidewalls and/or a beveled floor. The first and second faces of the substrate may have square perimeters, and/or the first face of the substrate may be textured. The light emitting diode may further include a plurality of emission regions and/or electrodes on the diode region, a respective one of which is confined to within a respective one of the pedestals and does not extend beyond the respective one of the pedestals.
In yet other embodiments of the present invention, the first face of the substrate includes therein an array of via holes. The via holes may include tapered sidewalls and/or a floor. The via holes preferably extend only part way through the substrate, but in other embodiments they can extend all the way through the substrate. The first and second substrate faces may have square perimeters, and/or the first face may be textured. The light emitting diodes may further include at least one electrode on the diode region that does not overlap the array of via holes.
The pedestals and/or array of via holes also may be used with light emitting diodes that include silicon carbide or non-silicon carbide substrates, to allow improved light extraction therefrom. Moreover, electrodes as described above also may be used with light emitting diodes that include a non-silicon carbide substrate. For example, when the first face of the substrate has smaller surface area than the second face, and the diode region is on the second face, an emission region may be provided on the diode region that is confined to within the smaller surface area of the first face.
In other embodiments of the present invention, light emitting diodes include a compensated, colorless silicon carbide substrate having first and second opposing faces and a gallium nitride-based diode region on the second face that is configured to emit light into the substrate upon application of voltage across the diode region. Mounting supports, reflectors, contact structures, grooves, pedestals, texturing and/or confined emission areas/electrodes may be provided according to any of the embodiments that were described above.
Accordingly, many of the above-described embodiments comprise embodiments of means for extracting from the substrate at least some of the light that is emitted into the substrate by the diode region. Examples of these means for extracting include compensating dopants in the silicon carbide substrate to provide a colorless silicon carbide substrate, patterning the substrate to define, in cross-section, a plurality of pedestals that extend into the substrate from the first face toward the second face and/or many of the other embodiments that were described above, including mounting supports, reflectors, contact structures, grooves, pedestals, texturing and/or confined emission areas/electrodes.
Light emitting diodes may be manufactured, according to some embodiments of the invention, by forming a diode region that is configured to emit light in a predetermined wavelength range on a second face of a substrate having first and second opposing faces, and that is transparent to the optical radiation in the predetermined wavelength range. The substrate is patterned before, during and/or after forming the diode region to define, in cross-section, a plurality of pedestals that extend into the substrate from the first face towards the second face. In other embodiments, the diode region is mounted onto a mounting substrate that is configured to support the diode region such that the light that is emitted from the diode region into the substrate is emitted from the first face upon application of voltage across the diode region. The mounting may be preceded by forming a reflector on the diode region such that the reflector is configured to reflect light that is emitted from the diode region back into the diode region through the substrate and from the first face, upon application of voltage across the diode region. Prior to forming the reflector, a transparent ohmic electrode also may be formed on the diode region opposite the substrate. A barrier region and/or an adhesion region also may be formed after forming the reflector. In other embodiments, a mounting support is placed adjacent the reflector with the barrier region and/or the adhesion region therebetween, and the LED is joined to the mounting support. In still other embodiments, an electrode is formed on the diode region that is confined to within the central portion thereof and does not extend onto the peripheral portion thereof.
Other method embodiments include forming a plurality of intersecting grooves into the first face of the substrate to define the plurality of pedestals, such as triangular pedestals, in the substrate. The grooves may include tapered sidewalls and/or a beveled floor. The first face of the substrate also may be textured. A plurality of electrodes also may be formed on the diode region. In some embodiments, a respective one of the electrodes is confined to within a respective one of the pedestals and does not extend beyond the respective one of the pedestals.
Still other method embodiments according to the present invention include reactive ion etching an array of via holes in the first face of the substrate. The via holes may include tapered sidewalls and/or a floor. The first face also may be textured. An electrode may be formed on the diode region that does not overlap the array of via holes.
Sawing a plurality of intersecting grooves and/or reactive etching an array of via holes into the first face may be used for light emitting diodes that include a silicon carbide or non-silicon carbide substrate to allow improved light extraction therefrom. Moreover, the formation of an emission region on the diode region that is confined to within the smaller surface area of the first face also may be used for other conventional light emitting diodes, to allow improved light extraction therefrom.